People familiar with the situation revealed that an investor group including a former betting company executive are urging 888 Holdings Plc to make some changes and boost the value of the popular UK gambling operator.
The sources, who preferred to remain unnamed because the information is confidential, reported that the consortium, which includes Lee Feldman, once a Chairman of GVC Holdings Plc before it renamed itself as Entain Plc in 2020, have contacted 888 Holdings Plc with their proposals. The group of campaigners has managed to increase its stake of more than 6% in the company, as revealed by the people familiar with the situation.
On June 6th, Mr Feldman shared that, in his opinion, the aforementioned assets were actually great, although they were currently undervalued. He, however, refused to make further comments on the situation.
Although no exact details have been provided, the sources shared that the recently made proposals could include leadership and strategy changes. The matter was not immediately commented on by a representative for 888 Holdings.
The Chief Executive Officer of 888 Holdings – Itai Pazner – stepped down from his position in the operator in January this year, amid an investigation into the company, aimed at finding whether some of the VIP accounts of the British gambling operator violated the country’s money-laundering policies.
Over the past 12 months, the company’s shares have faced a drop of about 63% in London trading. The shares of 888 Holdings closed up 14% in London trading yesterday, which gives the gambling operator a market capitalisation of £359 million.
Several Ex-Entain Officials Bach the Recommendations for Changes
The initial reports about the group of investors seeking changes at 888 Holdings were officially confirmed by a regulatory filing issued on June 6th.
The filing confirmed that, as mentioned above, Mr Feldman has joined efforts with other Entain shareholders, including two of the company’s former chief executive officers – Shay Segev and Kenny Alexander. They are also joined by a former chief investment officer, Daniel Shribman, as well as a former Entain director, Stephen Morana.
People familiar with the matter noted that the group has already contacted 888 Holdings, suggesting some actions that would boost the value of the gambling company. However, no specific details have been revealed so far.
The market capitalisation of 888 Holdings has suffered a massive decline after reaching a peak of approximately £1.8 billion in 2021 after it took over the non-US assets of William Hill. Having that in mind, concerns have become even more serious following the increase of some interest rates, with the company’s net debt totalling 5.6 times earnings at the end of 2022. That was also a reason why the group’s ability to invest in its further growth was negatively affected.
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Olivia Cole
